January Snow
by DarkeAngelle
Summary: They didn't remember the last time they had exchanged "I Love You"s or even the last time they had been intimate. But that's what hard work and odd job shifts will do to you. XemXal Day 2013


Winter was his favorite month. The way that the snow fell was enchanting in itself, but the blankets that covered the ground in flawless white mounds was something to behold. It wasn't death, like autumn seemed to be, but it wasn't birth like spring was. Winter was a time to restart. A time of clean slates, wiped away by chilly winter winds. There were plenty of other perks as well, of course, if you looked at winter from a more materialistic point of view. There was the holiday season in a whole, food, snow fights, fireplaces, hot cocoa, ice skating, champagne, scarves, and long hours situated on a couch with the one you love under a quilt. Although, for him, the one he loved seemed to be a bit distant. The two of them never had much time to interact, as he worked days and his boyfriend worked nights. It was a strained relationship, and even sharing an apartment couldn't fix much. And while the snow blanketed the street outside the window, two bodies were curled up, one beginning to awaken to take on the day.

Xaldin woke quietly, shutting off his alarm not even a second before it had gone off. He had been up for the past two hours now, just taking in the moment. Xemnas was sound asleep beside him, having just crawled into bed around six. He had a long shift last night at the hospital, and he was even asleep in his scrubs due to how exhausted he was. His usual flawless white hair was no longer slicked back, but laying helter-skelter on the blue pillows, his face hidden under the covers as he curled up into a ball, one hand reaching for where his boyfriend lay, gripping the sheet there when the body left.

He went about his routine as swift and silent as ever. He showered, put on his uniform for the auto factory, got himself some eggs and toast, and made one more pit stop in the bedroom to get his phone.

"Xaldin…?"

The older man paused, fingers wrapping around his phone as he looked over at the body on the bed. "Go back to sleep, Xemnas… I didn't mean to wake you."

Amber eyes were already open, however, Xemnas pushing himself up in a sitting position. He looked like hell, still exhausted with bags under his eyes. "Are you leaving for work?"

He didn't wait for an answer, crawling over the short expanse of bed before he could grip the man's arm, pulling him over and wrapping arms around his neck. He felt Xaldin stiffen in surprise at the contact, and a sleepy smile worked onto his face. Leaning up as he pulled the other down, he pressed a kiss to a gauged ear before whispering into it, "Have a good day. I love you."

For a moment, the dreadlocked man didn't know how to reply. It took a long moment before he returned the hug, only to slip from tanned arms as soon as the gesture was over. He could hardly remember the last time they had really spoken to each other, and the roughness of Xemnas' far too tired voice seemed oddly kind for him. But when they last exchanged "I love you"s… He didn't remember that at all. "I love you too. Get some sleep, please."

He got a grunt in return and Xemnas sank back down to the mattress, now laying on Xaldin's side of the bed. By the time the other left, his nose was buried in his love's pillow in efforts to pretend he was still there. He fell asleep in less than a minute.

When Xaldin returned from work that night, he wasn't surprised to see that the lights in their apartment were off. As usual, Xemnas would have left for work by now. Xaldin would have dinner and do a few chores before he went to sleep in the empty bed, and Xemnas would arrive around five or six. Like clockwork. But something seemed different today. Maybe it was because they had actually spoken more than a "I didn't mean to wake you" or a "Welcome home", but their exchange from the morning had been pressing at Xaldin's brain all day. He paused in the kitchen as his dinner heated up in the microwave, violet eyes roaming over to the calendar pinned to the wall. Was today his birthday? Xemnas' birthday? No… Today was January third… Something was important about that date, but the mechanic beeping of the microwave distracted his train of thought.

After he ate, Xaldin took another shower to get the stench of factory off of his skin, moving to the bedroom in nothing but a towel in search of pajamas. He flipped on the light and went straight for his dresser, dropping the towel and stepping into clean boxers before a pair of sweats. He pulled his dreadlocks back as they continued to let out occasional droplets of water onto the industrial carpet, bending to crack his back before he switched the light off and blindly climbed into bed.

Only to hit something a bit harder than the mattress.

His first reaction, of course, was to touch the object again just to make sure he was correct in assuming what it was. And when he felt fingers that weren't his own wrap around his wrist, his instincts made him punch. There was a grunt of pain when the fist made contact, knees jerking up in pained reflex. A second hand grabbed at his shoulder and tried to push him off, but Xaldin's arm drew back and snapped forward, but instead of a grunt, he was greeted with a panicked, "It's me, idiot!"

Xaldin immediately stopped, his stomach dropping in horror and surprise at what he had just done. Reaching over, he managed to turn on the bedside lamp, violet eyes wide as they stared down into frightened amber.

"Xemnas? What're you doing here? You should have left for work hours ago." As he spoke, he was looking for injuries, but he soon found his face heating up when he was greeted with a sight he hadn't expected.

"I fell asleep waiting; I'm sorry. I took the night off, considering it's our anniversary…" He trailed off, soon realizing that Xaldin was paying less attention to what he was saying and more attention to what he was _wearing_. Xemnas felt his cheeks heat up as he shifted under the other, sitting up a bit and kicking the blankets off. "Happy anniversary, love."

Xemnas looked better than he had this morning. He looked properly rested, fed, cleaned, hair brushed and… Well, he wasn't exactly _dressed_. Xemnas was completely naked, wearing nothing except for a small black thong (where had he even gotten _that_?) and a suddenly sultry expression. His arms draped around Xaldin's semi-damp shoulders as he pulled him down, laying down with Xaldin bridged over him. He was embarrassed by his own choice of clothing, but as long as Xaldin enjoyed it…

Xemnas had expected to be ravaged. It had been so long since they had done something so intimate, sex not even crossing their minds in their exhausted mindsets. He expected Xaldin to throw his freshly applied clothes away and just fuck him, raw, long, _hard_. Not a fight for dominance like it usually was, but Xaldin taking complete and utter control of the situation. He wanted them to stay up all night, go so long and hard that they would both have to call in sick.

But instead, Xaldin simply lowered himself, and hugged him.

The gesture, while unexpected, was completely welcome. Xaldin just held him, burrowing his nose into the other's neck and taking a long inhale. Xemnas was wearing that aftershave that he liked so much. He smelled of soap and shampoo as well, completely cleaned from head to toe. Inside and out. But Xaldin didn't really care about that. He only held him, and that was all he did for several minutes, until Xemnas let out a soft noise of the older man's name.

Xemnas' neck stretched as he rolled his head to the side, feeling warm, weather-chapped lips beginning to mouth over his skin. A soft moan left his own mouth, even though the kisses were less sexual and more… affectionate. And in a way, that seemed to turn the younger on even more. Besides, Xemnas had always been overly vocal. Xaldin wouldn't have it any other way. And the kisses continued, along the smooth column of Xemnas' neck before moving to his jaw, until finally, after so much time that both of them had lost track, Xaldin claimed his lips. The kiss was soft, nothing deeper than mouths simply moving together. Xemnas was the first to introduce a tongue to the equation, Xaldin's own pace not speeding up. It had been far too long since they had done this, and the raven haired man had every intention to make it last as long as possible.

They kissed until they couldn't breathe, the winter moon fading behind a curtain of clouds to give the two men privacy. A hand (they forgot whose it was) slipped over to turn off the light as they continued through gasps of air. They rolled once, twice, until naked chests were pressed as close as they could and Xemnas perched on Xaldin's hips. Fingers filtered through strands of silver hair as thin hands worked over hard biceps. Finally, they seemed to be moving closer to what Xemnas had planned, closer to the reason why he had taken the night off and put on such a skimpy outfit, but…

"I want to go ice skating." Xaldin pulled back from the kiss, his hands moving so that he was cupping the other's cheeks.

Xemnas blinked once. Twice. One more time and it finally sank in. "Ice skating?" Glancing over, he frowned at the glowing red numbers on the clock. "Xaldin, it's almost midnight. There's nowhere open for ice skating at this hour…"

"I want to do _something_ with you," he murmured, pressing once more against kiss-swollen lips.

"Then why not do _me_?" Xemnas countered, smirking as his hips lowered, giving a firm grind to Xaldin's thigh to show him how much the kissing was turning him on. "I didn't put this thing on for comfort. And I worked so long and hard in the shower to get myself loose enough for you…"

_That_ got his attention.

"You… what?"

"In the shower, before you got home. I spent so much time preparing for you. I wanted it to go perfect." His smirk grew into a look of pure lust that almost scared Xaldin off, the younger man prowling up his body as his hips continued to roll, hands languidly playing over the other's chest, occasionally flicking at the rings on his nipples. "I used your conditioner on my fingers and just started stretching, fucking myself hard and deep like you usually do. But I can never get as deep as you can, I can't get as full… I want you, Xaldin. I want you to fill me up and-"

He didn't get to finish that, getting rolled over and pinned the bed suddenly. He was grinning in victory, however, when he saw that usual hunger lurking in Xaldin's dark eyes. The way his muscles flexed, the way his chest heaved with panting gasps of air that came from total arousal, and the way his legs shook just a little bit as he tried not to start thrusting when clothes were still in the way.

This was going to be _fun_.


End file.
